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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: game · kid · file · hand · present · date · bore · mark

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. hand — in cards
  5. date — the fruit
  6. bore — to tire
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. kid — to tease
  9. file — a document
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. present — there
  12. kid — child
  13. file — a tool
  14. game — a match
  15. mark — a trace
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. game — wild animals
  18. mark — a grade
  19. hand — help
  20. present — the time now
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. file — a line of people
  23. bore — to drill
  24. present — a gift

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com